A common problem for home makers is the tracking of dirt and/or mud from outside a dwelling into the living area thereof by work-men, children, spouses, and others. It is not unusual for a home maker to require that work-men, children, spouses, and others remove their shoes or boots to avoid contamination of the clean surfaces within the dwelling with dirt, mud, grass, debris, or contaminated fluid. This can be inconvenient when frequent entry and exit is required, or when rapid response to ringing phones or household emergencies is necessary. This inconvenience can result in missed calls, unresolved emergencies, or a lack of compliance with shoe and boot removal requirements, leading to tracking up previously clean surfaces. The inconvenience and the results thereof can also result in domestic disputes, and conflict between the involved parties.
Various shoe cleaning devices that remove dirt, mud, grass, and debris from the bottom of a shoe or boot are well known. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,436,234 issued to STEIN discloses a shoe cleaning device that may be affixed to a door step or porch to enable persons entering a house to first clean off the dirt or mud from the shoes. Furthermore, that device has a plurality of brushes which may be replaced from time to time.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,602,724 issued to BATCHELOR discloses a device that prevents the spread of contamination from one dairy herd to another that clings to a person's shoes and is then introduced into the food of an undiseased cow. The device also includes a sterilizing solution to kill germs carried on the shoe.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,301,739 issued to CAZAUX discloses a vehicle shoe cleaning device with removable bristles that can be mounted beneath a vehicle immediately adjacent one of the vehicle door openings.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,374,449 issued to JOLLY discloses an athletic shoe cleaner comprising an anchoring means and a plurality of spaced rods that can be secured in an earthen surface and is sufficiently rigid to remove grass, dirt and debris from the bottom of a shoe.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,557,203 issued to MESHBESHER discloses a shoe cleaning device that minimizes transmission of communicable disease by removing debris and living microorganisms by brushing the sides and bottom of a shoe in a container with sanitizing fluid.
As indicated above, the main concern of these prior inventions is to prevent the dirt, mud, grass and debris adhering to the bottom of a shoe from depositing on a clean area. Various options include cleaning shoes by brushing, scraping, washing with disinfectant solution, etc. All of the available cleaning methods, however, have involved obvious disadvantages. Accordingly, there remains a need for a new and improved device for keeping the dirt, mud, grass and other debris on shoes or boots from contaminating a clean area.